Ma'a Nonu is likely to be on the list to meet Prince Harry. Photos / Getty Images
Ma'a Nonu is likely to be on the list to meet Prince Harry. Photos / Getty Images
Rugby officials hoping Prince Harry will kick on after the big game.
Prince Harry will be the guest of honour at the Hurricanes v Sharks match at the capital's Cake Tin on May 9, and the Wellington rugby stars are planning quite the reception for the party prince... if protocol allows.
Ma'a Nonu, Beauden Barrett, Cory Jane, Conrad Smith, Victor Vito and the Savea brothers are likely to be among the contingent to greet the prince after their game.
"Details are to be ironed out in the next couple of days," a spokeswoman for Wellington Rugby told The Diary.
"We are talking to Prince Harry's camp about the possibility of him coming to say 'g'day' to the boys post-game, but nothing is confirmed.
"We know he won't have a lot of time, but the boys are hoping they might be able to give him a jersey and have some time with him."
Harry is more at home on the polo field than the rugby pitch, but he will not be too far out of his element. He is vice-patron of the English Rugby Football Union and honorary president of England Rugby 2015, the organising committee for this year's World Cup.
But will he break royal protocol and hit some of Courtenay Place's finest establishments with the 'Canes for a real dose of Kiwi hospitality?
Best pics of the week
1. Much has been made this week of the Prime Minister's wife, Bronagh Key, having to wear an abaya in Saudi Arabia to avoid a cultural calamity. But no such problems for One News producer Sophie Baird (left) and reporters Lisa Davies and Wendy Petrie, who respectfully wore head scarves at Istanbul's top tourist attraction, and described their style as "Blue Mosque chic". Is that sightseer sartorial parlance for cultural cringe?
One News team Sophie Baird, Lisa Davies and Wendy Petrie in Instanbul. Photo / Supplied
2. What is wrong with this picture? No, it's not that Lorde is smiling, although cracking a grin is hardly de rigueur for our pop princess. But what the devil is she doing holding Taylor Swift's foot?
The besties were snapped in a group pic with a tuk-tuk, the band Haim, Empire actress Serayah and Nickelodeon star Halston Sage at Taylor's house in LA on Tuesday, where her muso boyfriend Calvin Harris apparently cooked a barbecue. Taylor captioned the pic "Real love". Looks more like a real Cinderella story with Our Lorde and a leather slipper.
3. With the cameras rolling and a gob wide open, John Key chowed down on a burger at a branch of Kiwi fast food chain Burger Fuel in Kuwait. But apparently he'd forgotten he'd had wagyu beef for lunch. Evidently his eyes were bigger than his stomach.
John Key enjoying a burger at Burger Fuel in Kuwait. Photo / twitter.com/kimbakerwilson
Cops drop Stevens case
Police have dropped an assault charge against former Noiseworks frontman Jon Stevens, 53, after there was insufficient evidence to prove a case against him, Sydney media report.
His former fiancee, Jodhi Meares, declined to give police a statement.
Cops were called to the couple's Point Piper apartment in February after a blazing row. The Kiwi singer was charged with assault, with a court date set for May 18, and police applied for an apprehended violence order on behalf of Meares. The application has been withdrawn.
It is good news for the musician, who last week complained that work had dried up as a result of the proceedings and bad publicity. He said 30 shows had been cancelled. "To say I'm at my lowest is an understatement," he wrote on Facebook.
Kiwi keeps her wings
Former Scarfie Stella Maxwell will keep her Angel wings, Victoria's Secret announced this week. The 23-year-old model - born in Belgium to Irish parents and raised in New Zealand - was discovered by a Kiwi modelling agent while studying at Otago University.
Ko pledges prize loot to quake aid
Hooray for World No1 golfer Kiwi Lydia Ko, 18, who has pledged to donate all her winnings from this week's LPGA tournament to the Nepal earthquake relief. The total purse is $1.7 million, with the winner to receive $256,000.
